ASUS M2N motherboards are available in different configurations, have different equipment on board and are ideal for mid-range computers. At the same time, a set of slots makes it possible to assemble computers for various purposes. Medium-sized office or computers for designers (designers), machines for programmers or home use. As usual equipment bearing the Asus logo, they are quite versatile and work stably. No wonder you can still sometimes hear: "Asus is Asus."
Story
During the release of M2N boards, the company repeatedly processed specifications, changed the set of additional chips and bus frequencies, but in general the arrangement of components on the board remained unchanged. For example, this is what the ASUS M2N-SLI looks like.
The board allows you to install 4 lines of memory (bottom right corner), while the memory can work in dual channel mode, which is clear from the color of the connectors, and 3 expansion cards with a PCI slot (top left corner, white slots).
But for comparison, ASUS M2N-MX. This board, while cheaper, has lesser features - only 2 lines for memory and two PCI. But the presence of built-in sound and built-in video, a slot for an external video card allows you to use it in quite serious machines.
Distinctive feature of the company
Those who are familiar with the company's products firsthand will agree that this brand takes care of even the little things. So, in the configuration of ASUS M2N-SLI, which we will talk about below, the package comes with 6 cables for connecting internal hard drives - according to the number of connectors on the board itself. That is, the buyer pays not only for the brand. Having brought such a board home, you can immediately use it, rather than looking for additional cables, adapters or connectors in stores.
Clones or Doppelgangers
The testers were somewhat puzzled by the external similarity of the SLI version and the ASUS M2N-E card. The same 4 lines for memory, the same arrangement of chips. It seems to be nothing special, there are just a lot of empty sockets where SLI has microcircuits. It seems that the E version was developed by the company from those chips that turned out to be with some flaw and could not work well in the older sister. And the fact that M2N-SLI is the elder sister for the card version E, it becomes apparent when looking at the BIOS. It is not very truncated, but, for example, for the Advanced Voltage Control section, almost all the settings were removed. There is only one option left - the option to add voltage to the processor socket. For the average user, these similarities may not be noticeable, but after comparing two cards next to each other - the appearance, the outputs on the back wall, the lack of chips and, by the way, the sticker with the name of the card that is completely unusual for the company, you come to the unambiguous conclusion - ASUS M2N-E is the sister of an ASUS SLI Deluxe card, but a younger one. And the decision to use the same boards, but with smaller parameters, allowed the company to release two instead of one product. Only one is the best, and the second is not the best, but not the worst.
The Deluxe version is higher in the first photo, and this is how the younger sister looks - empty spots in the block of connectors facing the back of the computer are clearly visible.
Features of M2N-SLI
And since we’ve started talking about connectors, let's compare the rear connectors on both cards. The first thing that catches your eye is 2 network sockets, one above the USB blocks (the younger sister has one). There is no port for connecting old printers, scanners, etc. If you remember that the card supports as many as 10 USB connectors, there will be no connection problems. And here another feature arises - the younger sister also does not have this port, but instead of it open space - for dust? This is what the findings of the ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe older sister look like.
From left to right, in blocks: PS / 2 (mouse and keyboard); 2 SP-DIF (above them com-port); sATA and Firewire; 2 USB blocks (above each on the network output) and 6-channel sound. In addition to those already listed, the younger sister does not have 1 SP-DIF, as well as sATA and Firewire. It is worth mentioning that only 4 USB are displayed on the rear panel, only the older one comes with a special bracket for the rear panel. In addition to the traditional pair in front, 4 ports are mounted using this bracket. On the board in the lower corner of the PCB there is a connector for its connection.
MX and derivatives
The motherboard ASUS M2N-E being essentially a truncated version of Deluxe does not have much difference. But MX and further derivatives of this card, having all the same capabilities of the processor and chipset, were assigned to a completely different class. The card has only 2 ATA connectors and a truncated number of expansion cards. In addition to the external video card, there is the opportunity to put only 2 expansion cards, and although in the specifications of some varieties there is a mention of additional USB, like SLI, there is simply nowhere to put them. At the same time, the specification of this card indicates support for up to 4 GB of RAM, which makes it possible to assemble computers based on 64bit. At the same time, there are no special frills here - a clean office option. The picture in the previous block shows the rear outputs of the top versions.
And here are the connectors on the back of the ASUS M2N-MX (from left to right): 1 and 11 - mouse and keyboard ports, respectively, 2 and 10 - parallel / serial port, 9 - Vga (this card has a built-in video chip, for video memory part of the operational is taken), 7, 8 - USB, 3 - network module (100 Mbit)? and the remaining 3 are a sound card. Typically, Realtek is used for sound.
The main features are shown in the table above, but in the general case, the boards of this class did not receive any unusual abilities, everything is sparing and minimal. However, one cannot expect any special features from such a board.
Card chipset
Was ASUS M2N and all derivative models, both top-end and budget ones, counted on system support? assembled based on AMD, so all models get an AM2 socket.
A set of chips from nVIDIA is also put on the board, which is not surprising, because, despite the fact that AMD bought the ATI brand, one of the manufacturers of graphic solutions, with the guts, the company has only plans to develop its own line of chipsets. Not the Intel chipset, of course, works a little worse than it could, but the company compensated for this with its own developments, which ultimately became a worthy competitor to Intel solutions.
The basis
The review would be incomplete if we hadn’t touched yet another card, which can be called the basis. Although it is considered to be budgetary, it was ASUS M2N that served as the prototype, on the basis of which Deluxe and MX appeared, about which so much was said above. And with the advent of the MX variety, the main map became average in the ranks. It is enough to recall the form factors of the considered cards. SLI, like E, are ATX cards. ASUS M2N also belongs to ATX, and only MX-based cards and its derivatives receive mATX. At the same time, this card, although it is a budget one, has 4 sATA connectors, 6 audio channels, as well as dual-channel memory capabilities. There are 4 memory slots in total, like the top model of today's review. What is most interesting - this model as a result of the main has become a transition. 6 audio channels are provided with 3, rather than 6 connectors, a parallel port is present, but there is no serial port (SLI, on the contrary, the MX has one and the other). The board has small overclocking capabilities - increasing the voltage on the processor and memory, as well as the ability to change the frequency of the system bus. In general, this is more than the E-version, but it is useless to overclock it - the limit values are quite low.
User opinions
As you know, manufacturers consider one thing, and in fact, sometimes something completely different refuses. Let's see what users say about ASUS M2N class cards. Reviews, like card classes, are divided. Those who tried to overclock soon face cooling problems - a weak cooler is not enough, and a strong cooler roars like an airplane. At the same time, there are opinions that, despite the minimum parameters of budget cards, you can play almost all the toys, which says a lot, given that the cards are not considered gaming. The card, of course, is not new, but if you flash the BIOS, it will pull all the newfangled components. The set of disks contains all the necessary software, and firmware can be found on the Internet.
Conclusion
In conclusion, you can see that there is a good solution for fans of the AMD brand. At the same time, a solution for every taste, class and wallet. In the ASUS M2N line, you can find top-end options, both budget and ultra-budget. Having created M2N, Asus did not stop there. Having the same processor socket and a set of basic chips, motherboards of this class and brand are able to satisfy a variety of requirements.